FNS

On October 10, Hurricane Michael made landfall in Florida. It was the strongest storm to hit the U.S. in a quarter-century, and the strongest on record to hit the state’s panhandle. Michael went on to track across the southeastern United States and continue its destruction through southern Georgia. At USDA, we knew our mission, in this difficult situation as in all of our work was clear: do right and feed everyone.

As Farm to School Month drew to a close in October, I spent a delightful day in Vermont visiting schools, meeting students and talking to the professionals responsible for serving wholesome, nutritious school meals.

Earlier this week, USDA Secretary Sonny Perdue and Acting Deputy Under Secretary for Food, Nutrition and Consumer Services Brandon Lipps joined students in New Jersey, Virginia and the District of Columbia for wholesome school lunches in celebration of National School Lunch Week, as proclaimed by President Trump. Nearly 100,000 schools and institutions serve almost 30 million children through the National School Lunch Program. Secretary Perdue visited Discovery Elementary School in Arlington, Va., where he met with the school’s nutrition professionals, and served the children meals before joining them for lunch.

While many students were busy enjoying summer vacation, our nation’s hardworking school nutrition professionals were also staying busy, dedicating their time to training and meal planning for the upcoming school year. During National School Lunch Week (October 15-19), USDA recognizes the tireless effort and love that goes into preparing school lunches for 30 million children.

My mother has a jar in her kitchen with the phrase, “Cooking is love made visible.” I can say for a fact that her food spreads a lot of love, and I think the same could be said about school food service professionals.

As the school year ends across the country and summer approaches, summer meals are critical in the lives of millions of our nation’s youth, whose risk for food insecurity increases during the summer months when they no longer have access to the National School Lunch and School Breakfast Programs (NSLP).

Did you know that the month of May has been designated National Allergy Awareness Month? While many of us are sneezing our way through the pollen season, we should also remember many people are affected by food allergies every day.

At USDA our mission is a vital one: to reduce hunger and increase food security by providing children and low-income people access to food, a nutritious diet and nutrition education. And that mission was put to the test in 2017, in the aftermath of a trio of devastating hurricanes that slammed into Texas, Florida, U.S. Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico.

Hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria – each Category 4 – all made landfall in less than a month between August and September 2017. It will be hard to ever forget these historic disasters and the toll they took on millions of American families. In recognition of the federal government’s Hurricane Disaster Preparedness Week (May 6-12), we want to assure the nation that USDA is ready to provide vital nutrition assistance to families in need when disasters strike.

Last week, USDA Acting Deputy Under Secretary for Food, Nutrition and Consumer Services (FNCS), Brandon Lipps, made a whirlwind trip to San Antonio, Texas, to serve as the keynote speaker at the National Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) National Child Nutrition Conference and visit local sites operating FNCS programs. The highlight of his conference remarks was announcing the availability of $5.4 million in training grants to help child and adult care providers deliver first-class meal service.